The ManicaPost
Lovemore Kadzura
Rusape Correspondent
A BUHERA man who trafficked a married woman to Masvingo Province and stayed with her against her will from November 2021 to January 2022 will spend the next 70 years in jail.
Witness Jichichi of Muchuwa Village under Chief Nyashanu was not represented by anyone when he appeared before Rusape regional magistrate, Mr Francis Mapfumo.
He was convicted on one count of human trafficking and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Jichichi was also convicted on three counts of rape and was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment on each of the cases.
He, however, was acquitted of deliberately infecting the woman with HIV.
The woman told the court that while in Masvingo, she stayed at a farm with Jichichi and he would always act like her bodyguard, following her around.
Jichichi only released his captive after learning that the woman’s relative were looking for her on both formal and social media platforms.
Prosecutor, Mr Marlon Makamba said Jichichi lied to the victim and her husband that he was an employee of a development partner (name supplied) and could facilitate the couple’s employment within the organisation in Masvingo.
He tricked the husband to remain behind in the village and lied that he was going to the development partner’s local offices to sign the employment contract with the complainant.
Instead, he took the unsuspecting woman into captivity.
“On November 25, 2021, Jichichi approached the complainant’s husband and falsely identified himself as an agent of a development partner. Jichichi offered to employ him and his wife at the organisation’s Masvingo offices.
“They agreed to meet the following day at Imbi Bus Stop for the journey to Masvingo. On November 26, 2022, Jichichi met the complainant and her husband at the bus stop as per their agreement.
“Jichichi told the couple that the complainant was supposed to accompany him to the organisation’s Birchenough Bridge offices alone to sign the contract. The husband was left at the bus stop and was told that his wife would come back to pick him up later,” said Mr Makamba.
After tricking the complainant and her husband, Jichichi went with the complainant to an unknown place in Masvingo.
While in Masvingo, Jichichi would force himself on the woman and in the process, he deliberately infected her with HIV.
